The silent stigma The silent stigma (April 14, 2004)

In the course of reporting this story, it became apparent that depression and mental illness aren't topics that people want to talk openly about -- even more so than other health issues. The few families who agreed to share their stories also asked they not be identified, to protect the teens from other people's negative reactions.

Even as they acceded to the social pressure, however, the families felt angry.

"Unfortunately, people still don't consider a mental problem in the same way as a normal health problem," said one Palo Alto mother. "That's a huge issue and incredibly unfair."

Another mother, who herself is prone to depression, felt that parents needed to take the lead in creating an open climate around mental health -- for their kids' sake.

"We've got to get parents not feeling like it's a stigma. It's not something to be ashamed of," she said. She worries that teens won't seek help, for fear that others will find out and treat them differently.

The stigma has become such a public-health issue, a national nonprofit formed to raise awareness and promote acceptance of people with mental-health issues. According to the National Mental Health Awareness Campaign Web site: "Our society tends to not give the same acceptance to brain disorders as we do to other organ disorders, say, heart trouble. The stigma surrounding these misunderstandings can limit opportunities, it can stand in the way of a new job, it can increase feelings of loneliness, and it can cause many other unfortunate outcomes."

Local child and adolescent psychiatrists say they do their part to assure families that mental illnesses are just like other health problems.

"It's no different than chronic asthma or diabetes," said Dr. Alan J. Rosenthal of the Palo Alto Medical Foundation. But, he added, "the organ involved is the brain, and we don't understand it as fully as other organs." -- Jocelyn Dong

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